• Viri4thus@feddit.org
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    4 days ago

    If Europe re-arms, why the fuck would it need the US and why the fuck would it still be a slave to the dollar when IT could have the world reserve currency? The entire basis of transatlanticism is that the yanks hold the sticks so none of the leaders in Europe gets funny ideas like in the early 20th century.

    How world leaders can be so mundane and pathetic as a rando at the local bodega is one of history’s greatest mysteries. What happened to all of the competent people that we’re left with absolute scrotum skin flakes of politicians.

    • UnfortunateShort@lemmy.world
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      3 days ago

      Absolutely agree, I think what Trump and his henchmen are doing will ultimately be good for the EU, whether that’s their intention or not. (I think it’s not btw.) What he seems to completely ignore is that it undermines their influence.

      If Europe now bets on it’s own chips, military tech and strength, currency, etc., this means the US loose economic and geopolitical weight. And on top of that, the perception of the US as an unwavering ally is lost. The US are now perceived more and more hostile. This means he can expect more opposition from the EU when he tries to do whatever random shit he comes up with.

      He’s so incredibly arrogant, he thinks everyone is so dependent on the US that they can’t refuse them anything, now and forever. I’m not sure I’d want to take that bet while I don’t have to.

    • robbinhood@lemmy.world
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      4 days ago

      I mean, if Europe doesn’t need the USA, that’s good for them? Like, congrats?

      The reserve currency is a tricky thing and will likely hurt the USA in the long run. If nothing else, America won’t be able to export its inflation.

      But if that leads to more options for international trade, it’s possible that the world as a whole benefits.

      • Viri4thus@feddit.org
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        4 days ago

        Tell me, in the history of the human race, when has someone with the biggest stick not use it when its vassals step out of line. People think the US is different than Russia. It isn’t, it just has better PR.

        • robbinhood@lemmy.world
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          4 days ago

          Sure. And that reinforces my point, better for Europe to have its own stick.

          Beyond which, amid AI, aging populations, global warming, blah blah, many countries are going to face serious internal challenges. At least for the USA, the pressure will make the global hegemony harder to sustain. Amid surging debt, it’s not hard to envision a world where the USA literally can’t afford to shield Europe. Get saner minds than Trump leading the USA, and it may be possible to establish a more equal and mutually beneficial relationship of peers.

          • Magnus@lemmy.ml
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            3 days ago

            The world will be a lot safer if we all have big sticks we can use to hit each other with.

            • robbinhood@lemmy.world
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              3 days ago

              I mean yeah, it can work exactly that way. The Cold War was horrifically bloody in many countries and regions, but the USA and USSR directly slugging it out would have bathed the world in much more blood. Likewise, the Soviets and China going at it in a full scale war after the Soviet-Sino split would have been horrific.

              It’s a high risk strategy but not one without rewards.

              • Magnus@lemmy.ml
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                3 days ago

                In that instance there were only two guys with sticks, if I understood you correctly you want to add another stick to the mix.

                • robbinhood@lemmy.world
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                  3 days ago

                  There were three guys with sticks. China couldn’t project power far but Soviet-Sino relations were strained and the risk of war was high because they share borders.

                  I’d love for there to be a world with no sticks period but humanity is a long way from that. Europe becoming the forth guy with a stick could force everyone else, and especially Russia, to be more cautious. And if it comes to blows, the EU/UK are gonna want to have that stick.

                  If you’re EU/UK and multiple parties are around you with big sticks, would you rather be defenseless or have a stick?